Samson fighting lion, partial Cyrillic circular legend КИАZЬ ВЕЛНКН ВАСНЛЕI ("Grand Duke Vasiliy") / Horseman right, holding a falcon, within a circle, partial КНAZЬ ВЕЛНКИI ВАСHЛEИ . 13mmx12mm, 0.40 grams. Uncertain mint (either Moscow or one of the provincial mints), struck 1423-1425. Guletsky/Petrunin #401.

Vasiliy I of Moscow (r. 1389–1425) was the Grand Prince of Moscow and Vladimir and a key figure in the consolidation of Russian lands in the late medieval period. The son of Dmitry Donskoy, he inherited a strengthened principality and pursued a largely diplomatic strategy to expand Moscow’s influence, securing control over territories such as Nizhny Novgorod, Murom, and parts of Novgorod’s lands. Vasiliy maintained relatively stable relations with the Golden Horde, continuing to pay tribute while avoiding major conflicts, and strengthened ties with Lithuania through his marriage to Sophia of Lithuania. His reign brought internal stability and territorial growth, laying important groundwork for Moscow’s eventual dominance under his successors.